Chapter 16: Placing the Blame
I got to the PokeCenter around dinner time. Silently, I grabbed some food from the mess hall and trudged up to my room, locking the door behind me. I finished my food and climbed into bed, emotionally exhausted from the days events. I had to have been really out of it, because a half-hour after I crawled onto the mattress, I heard the sound of pokeballs opening, accompanied by small flashes of red light. Apparently, I had forgotten Sora was still out of her pokeball, and she had released everyone else out for a group meeting.
"mmhmph." Armstrong groaned, stretching his sore muscles. "Man, I'm beat." he muttered.
"No kidding." Lola said, sounding exhausted. "Why haven't we been healed? I mean, we won, right?" she asked. I silently kicked myself for not thinking of them and getting them healed up.
"There was...an accident." Sora mumbled. "I didn't see what happened, but Franklin... he lost to the Roserade."
Everyone was quiet for a long time. There was some movement near my bed, a small shuffling. "Let Nick rest." Sora chided softly. "What happened to Franklin hit him pretty hard." Whoever it was hesitated slightly before moving away. A small sniffle told me it was Lola.
"This sucks." she mumbled. "I mean, I haven't been on the team long, but I liked Franklin."
"Yeah. He was always tolerant of me whenever I wanted to study him." Lin said.
"He may not have been as strong as me, but he was a great battler." Armstrong added, still bragging even when he was mourning a friend.
"We all miss him." Sora concluded. They were silent again for a long time.
"There is a lesson to be learned here." Mufasa said.
"Oh yeah? And what's that? 'Don't get cocky, you might wind up dead'? I think we already know that one thanks!" Lola snapped.
"No. It's that death can come for us at any time." Mufasa retorted. "We cannot expect that everything will go the way we want it to. For all we know, the five of us here won't make it to the end of this journey. We have to be prepared." Silence fell on the gathering again.
"He's right." Sora piped up. "We all know the risks involved, there's no denying that. But after this, we need to prepare for the worst. We can be cautious in battle all we like, but a lucky hit in the right spot could end it."
"What about Nick?" Lin asked. "Is he supposed to just accept the fact that we might all die?"
"If it makes him a better trainer, yes." Sora replied. "Look, Nick needs us as much as we need him. But it's like Mufasa said, and Cynthia said before that. Sooner or later, someones luck is going to run out. Just like Franklin." She sighed. "Look, let's all get some rest. Tomorrow, we all need to talk with Nick about what happened." There was a small commotion as everyone moved around, finding a comfortable spot to sleep. Silence fell for the night and I drifted off to sleep.
The next morning I woke up early, mostly because I fell asleep much earlier than usual. Getting up and looking around the room, I found that everyone was still asleep. I quietly returned them all to their pokeballs, not wanting to wake them. After getting dressed, I went down to the front desk, dropping everyone off for healing. Then I moved over to a spot I rarely visited at any PokeCenter, the PC.
Booting up the computer, I accessed my pokemon storage system, glancing at the few names written onscreen. I need someone to take Franklin's spot I thought to myself. There was only one real option, which I took with a sigh. The pokeball materialized next to me on the table top. Snatching it up, I logged off and exited the building, making a beeline to the lake and the bridge going over it. Once I arrived, I sat at the end of the bridge, staring at the sunrise. I grabbed the pokeball and pressed the button, unleashing the pokemon inside it.
Rose the Budew stretched, yawning in the morning light. She blinked a few times, looking around and getting an idea of what was happening. She glanced up at me. "Is this going to become a thing with us? Sitting at lakes and rivers together, talking about life?" she snarked, sitting next to me.
I chuckled darkly. "Maybe." I answered, still staring at the sunrise. There was a long pause before I spoke again. "Franklin's dead." I said.
Rose paused before responding. "He was the Turtwig, right? The one you used to catch me?" I nodded. "That's to bad." she said, patting me on the back lightly with one of her vines. "I take it that's why I'm out here and not tucked away in the PC." she said, not even bothering with a question. I nodded anyway. "Well then, what are we waiting for? I bet I've got a lot of training to do before I'm up to snuff with the rest of your team." She stared at me, waiting for me to respond in some way. "Hey, what's the matter? I thought we were here to train."
"Well, yeah, but I thought..." I began. "I don't know, I needed someone to talk to." I explained what happened to Franklin at the gym, just venting my frustrations.
Rose looked at me for a long time, studying my face. "So why me? You have to know the rest of the team better, why talk to the odd Budew you caught ages ago and shoved in a box?" she asked.
I shrugged. "I felt like it. I guess I can't face the rest of the team because I feel like it's my fault Franklin died."
Rose snorted. "That's bullshit and you know it." she said, the curse startling me. I stared at the little grass pokemon, who stared right back. "Well, it's true." she pressed. "I mean, I wasn't there, clearly, but I seem to remember in out last little chat you mentioning not letting anyone die."
"But he did!" I argued. "I could have just used Sora like I had for the other trainers in the gym, but I got cocky and used everyone else instead! Lola and Armstrong almost died and Franklin actually did!" I was shouting now, probably making quite the scene if anyone was around.
"And like I said, that's bullshit that you blame yourself for that!" Rose shouted back, getting to her feet. "Sure, you could have used Sora, and maybe she would have died instead of Franklin. Maybe one of the others would have been killed, I don't know, I'm not a psychic-type. My point is, you can't predict the future. You had no idea that not using Sora would come back and bite you. Was it a dumb decision? Yes, and now you know better. Is it your fault that Franklin died? No. This was a grass gym, right? How could you have known that Franklin was going to be in any danger there? He should've been fine! What I'm saying is that you can't blame yourself for the random shit that happens in the world, stuff that's outside your control. Let me ask you this. If Franklin had survived the blow and was seriously hurt, would you have used Sora?"
"Of course!" I answered immediately.
"Then stop acting like a martyr, put on your big boy pants and let's get this show on the road!" Rose barked. "It happened, Franklin's dead, and there was nothing you could have done to prevent it other than not be an overconfident asshole. Now unless you want his death to be meaningless, learn from your mistake and move on." She stalked off, walking down the pier towards the forest. "Coming?" she called over her shoulder.
I got to my feet, still kind of in shock at being yelled at by a foot-tall plant, and followed. By the time the sun was setting, we were crossing the bridge back, Rose having evolved into a Roselia not long after we left. She stood a little taller now, looking much more human shaped than before. Her arms now had full on flowers at the ends, and a small leaf-shaped dress covered her body. Three thorns poked out of her head like a crown. As we walked back, she spoke up. "Why did you replace him with me anyway?" she asked. "If it was a Roserade that killed him, why have one on your team?"
I thought about it for a moment. "Honestly, if I had any other grass-type I wouldn't have." I said. "But you're right about learning from my mistakes. Now every time I see you, I'll remember Franklin and what my overconfidence cost me. Sorry if that sounds mean of me."
She shook her head. "Not at all, I'm glad to help. And I'll do more than that, I'll take out every water, rock, or ground type between here and the Elite Four for ya." she crowed. I chuckled. Didn't she just tell me earlier today not to be overconfident? I thought.
Arriving at the PokeCenter, I found my team waiting for me in my room. Their eyes locked onto Rose as we stepped in. "Hi y'all." she waved. "For those of you that don't know, that'd be you bunny girl, my name's Rose. I'm not here to replace Franklin, I'm here to battle and help out in any way I can."
Armstrong grinned. "I like her already." he said, giving the little plant a thumbs up. Everyone else gave a nod of approval while Lin crawled over for her usual inspection of the new teammate. Sora flapped over to me as I sat down at the bed.
"Feeling okay?" she asked. I nodded. "Yeah, Rose managed to snap me out of my funk. Thanks for what you said last night by the way." I said.
"Guess I should have known you were awake for that." she chuckled, watching Rose as she was subjected to the Geodude's curiosity. "She'll be a fine addition to the team." Sora noted.
"Yeah." I agreed.
The next day, I packed my bags for the trip back down to Oreburgh. The plan was to restock at the mining town before moving through Mt. Coronet and moving on to Hearthome City. However, one major obstacle blocked my path.
"What do you mean I can't go on the road?" I shouted at the security guard who was blocking my path. "That's the quickest way back to Oreburgh!"
"I understand that sir, but the Cycling Road is for bike riders only." the guard replied. "It's to dangerous for pedestrians."
"That's the biggest load of-" I began before I felt a hand on my shoulder. Glancing over it, I saw a younger guy wearing a shop uniform.
"Hey, you're just the kind of guy I was looking for." he said. "Follow me, I'll hook you up with a bike." he part led part dragged me back up the street, making a few turns until we arrived at a small bike shop. Finally, he let go of me and I massaged my shoulder.
"Okay, what was that about giving me a bike?" I asked looking around. The shop was empty save for a few bike on display. All in all, it looked abandoned. "Look man, if you want to rob me, you picked the wrong guy." I warned, hand going towards my pokeballs.
The young guy raised his hands in protest. "No, no, nothing like that!" he stammered. "I do have a bike I can give you, really! It's just...I need a favor first."
My eyes narrowed a bit. "What kind of favor?" I asked.
"Team Galactic has a building on the edge of town." he began. "It's impossible to get to without the Cut HM and the badge. The other day, some grunts came to the shop and tried to steal my boss' Clefairy. When the boss fought back, they kidnapped him too and took off! I can't run the shop by myself, I'm just an errand boy! But I can't rescue him either. That's why I need you."
I stared at him. "Let me get this straight." I said. "Your boss and his pokemon was kidnapped by a group of national criminals, and your first response is to hire a random trainer to save him by offering him a bike? Why didn't you go to the cops? You know what, forget it, I'll take the deal. Only because I need the bike and I've got my own issues with Team Galactic."
"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" the guy said, hugging me quickly before letting go. "They're north of town, and like I said, you need the HM."
"I got it, thanks." I muttered, already on my way north. After stopping by the PokeCenter, it didn't take long to find the building. "Seriously, who decides to decorate their hidden evil team building with spikes? Could they be more obvious? What the hell's wrong with this place." I muttered, releasing Rebecca. I had traded her out for Mufasa for the purpose of using the HM. "Here you go girl." I said, handing her the disk. After the glow faded away, I put the disc back in my bag. "Okay Rebecca, use Cut!" I declared, pointing at a clump of small trees. She whipped her tail sharply, slicing the trees in half and clearing the way. "Thanks, you can go back to sleep now." I praised, returning the Bibarel to her ball.
Sneaking up to the building, I glanced inside a window. Grunts were patrolling all over the place, all of them doing some odd job or another. "Man, how am I supposed to get in here without a huge battle?" I groaned.
"You could take the back stairs." a voice said in my ear. I practically jumped out of my skin, whirling around to see a grunt standing behind me. His face was gaunt and he had a friendly smile. "Hi there!" he said cheerfully.
I stopped reaching for a pokeball and stared at the weird grunt. "uh...hi?" I said. "So, the back stairs huh?"
He nodded. "Oh, and before you go around talking to all the other grunts, I'm not actually with them." he said, grabbing his blue hair and pulling. It turned out to be a wig that came right off, revealing short black hair underneath. The wig had been so outlandish that I hadn't recognized who it was until he took it off.
"Looker!" I yelped, still not sure if this guy was friend or foe. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question!" he retorted, putting the wig back on. "I'm trying to infiltrate Team Galactic and learn their secrets. This place isn't giving me any clues, so I'm moving on. Now what about you?"
"I'm trying to save some old guy and his Clefairy." I said. "Team Galactic kidnapped him from Eterna."
Looker nodded. "Yes, I remember something about that while I was inside. Still, the best place to go would be the back stairs. It's always unguarded just in case someone wants to sneak in."
"Why does that sound like a trap to me?" I asked to no one in particular.
"Because it is!" Looker replied proudly. "On each floor there are three separate staircases. Only one leads to the next floor. The rest lead to rooms with guards in them. You need to get the right one or they'll raise the alarm."
"Got it, thanks." I muttered, sneaking around the side of the building. "Do me a favor and call the Eterna police. I need some backup here."
The strange secret agent nodded and crept away as I entered the stairway he talked about. I let Lola out of her pokeball, deciding that I'd need a fast, hard-hitting pokemon in case I run into trouble. Sure enough, I picked the wrong one right off the bat, facing down a grunt with a Stunky.
"Lola, Jump Kick!" I called, charging forward to stop the grunt from calling on his radio. Lola easily dispatched the enemy pokemon with a kick, then snuck up behind the grunt I was struggling with and knocked him out too. "Good job, now let's keep moving." I muttered, turning to leave the room. I noticed a soft glowing coming from behind me and I turned quickly, expecting another attack. Instead, I saw that the light was coming from Lola, the bunny pokemon quickly growing taller. Her ears grew even larger, flopping over and growing down until they reached her hips. Her body filled out, growing more slender and curvier. Small tufts of fur grew on her wrists and around her feet. Finally, a rather large crest of fluff grew over her eyes, highlighting them on her brown main coat. She had evolved into a Lopunny, growing so big her head reached my chest. "Cool, you evolved!" I said as she twisted and turned, getting the feel for her new form.
"Yay! Now I'm all grown up! No more tiny little bunny remarks for me!" she cheered, jumping up and down happily.
"Alright, come on, we've still got work to do." I said, making my way out of the room. She followed, still happily humming to herself.